This invention relates generally to a structure of diagonal insertion apparatus used in the assembly of equipment and more particulary to diagonal insertion apparatus for the insertion of shaft-like members into holes of insertion receiving components in the process of assembling equipment.
In particular, this invention facilitates the easy alignment and insertion of shaft-like members into diagonal holes of components of equipment being assembled as accomplished with diagonal insertion apparatus used in the assembly process. The diagonal insertion apparatus of this invention has particular relevance in the assembly of equipment in the form of wire dot print heads. The equipment component in the process of being assembled is a print head wire guide and is supported on a holding table or pallet and has one or more diagonally aligned holes for receiving a shaft-like member, e.g., a dot print head dot wire, inserted therein by an actuator of the diagonal insertion apparatus. The holding table is aligned beneath the diagonal insertion apparatus and is elevated as well as inclined at an appropriate angle relative to a horizontal plane by a plurality of vertically extending pins having different lengths supported on a mounting plate which is aligned beneath the holding plate. Thus, the mounting plate is elevated from below the holding table to impose a predetermined tilting alignment to the holding table so that the center line of a diagonal hole is aligned with the axis of a shaft-like member held by the diagonal insertion apparatus for insertion into the diagonal hole.
Examples of such diagonal insertion apparatus of the prior art employed in the assembly of equipment are disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6 wherein equipment component 16 is provided with a diagonal hole 16A inclined at an angle with respect to the horizontal plane and shaft-like member 15, held in a chuck 14 is inserted into hole 16A by means of actuator 13. As shown in FIGS. 5, actuator 13 is inclined by means of an inclined support stand 17 or, as shown in FIG. 6, actuator 13 is inclined by means of an adjustable mechanism 17A to axially align shaft-like member 15 relative to hole 16A.
However, in connection with the first configuration shown in FIG. 5, the mechanism employed to perform insertion, i.e., actuator 13, was constructed to be at the desired inclined angle for proper alignment of member 15 for insertion into hole 16A but the performed inclined angle for actuator 13 is not easily achieved because of lack machining accuracy of inclined surfaces determining the precise angle of required inclination. Furthermore, in the case of the second configuration shown in FIG. 6, the inability to see the inside of the diagonal hole made precision axial aligning adjustment extremely difficult, even in the case where a fine adjustment mechanism for positioning mechanism 17A was included with the apparatus.
Further, from the aspect of continual supply of the shaft-like members 15 for insertion into holes 16A, when the receiving components must be moved horizontally or rotated relative to their axis, the mechanism employed to move these components for alignment in a direction relative to the X, Y, Z and .theta. axes and incline them has little space for maneuverability resulting in the design of a complicated mechanism rendering continuous alignment accuracy difficult.
In addition, whenever the model or type of member 16 to receive inserted members 15 is changed and the angle of diagonal hole 16A is correspondingly changed, the angle of inclined stand 17 must also be readjusted or changed.
It is an object of the present invention to solve the foregoing described problems.
It is further object of this invention to offer a diagonal insertion apparatus that provides for the easy insertion shaft-like members into diagonal holes of components in an assembly line type environment by providing for easy axial alignment of the component holes relative to the shaft-like members.